Missouri Botanical Gardens - The Japanese Garden

This garden is one of the largest traditional Japanese gardens in North America. It is called a "garden of pure, clear harmony and peace."

This fountain is found at the entrance to the garden.

Some of the shaded walkways are lined with hostas.

There was quite a large sand garden.

The garden totals fourteen acres surrounding a five acre lake.

Many of the lotus has already finished blooming.

However, I did find this yellow one with a pretty green dragonfly.

In the distance you can see a traditional Japanese bridge.

Of course, we did stop to feed the koi fish as we crossed one of the bridges.
That one in front had his mouth open waiting for us to drop in the fish food.

We have finally reached the bridge that will lead us out of the garden.

And the family is still hanging in there with smiles on their faces.

Missouri Botanical Gardens - Bird Garden

Another interesting part of the Missouri Botanical Gardens was the Bird Garden.  This is an area dedicated to attracting birds and butterflies which includes many vibrantly colored flowers.

       This is the entrance

This was the only bird other than a hummingbird that I saw while walking through the garden.  You really need to look closely to see him because he blends in so well with his surroundings.

The colors were so vivid and beautiful.

Some really tall sunflowers.

The Missouri Botanical Gardens - Water Lillies

One of my favorite places to visit in St. Louis is the Missouri Botanical Gardens. This year they are celebrating their 150th anniversary. It is the oldest botanical garden in continuous operation in the nation. It was established by Henry Shaw as a public botanical garden from the very beginning.

The reflecting pools hold a collection of signature water lilies. The tropical water lilies and giant Victoria water lilies have been a major garden attraction since the first head gardener, James Gurney, introduced them to St. Louis in 1890. If you interested in learning more you can go to www.mobot.org.

    

Dragonflies love them....

These next two pictures are of the same flower, however, taken at different ISO settings.  The differences in color are really interesting.

ISO 200

                      ISO 80

Can't you just picture a big, fat frog sitting on that lillypad?

Bees are always flying in and out of them....
\

And here is my family waiting "patiently" for me, so we can move on.

Lakeside Rose Gardens - Fort Wayne, IN

We stopped by the Rose Gardens on Sunday. I was a little disappointed that there were not many fresh blooms. I guess it has been too dry lately.